Thomas Gambino

Thomas Francis Gambino (August 23, 1929 – October 3, 2023) was an Italian-American New York City mobster and a longtime caporegime of the Gambino crime family who successfully controlled lucrative trucking rackets in the New York City Garment District.

He was the son of Carlo Gambino and nephew of Paul Castellano.

Gambino was born on August 23, 1929, to Carlo and Catherine (née Castellano) Gambino.

He had three siblings, Joseph, Carl, and Phyllis Gambino Sinatra.

His father joined the original Mangano crime family during the 1930s, rose to capo and later to underboss.

In 1957, Carlo Gambino became boss of what is now called the Gambino crime family.

Carlo Gambino became one of the most powerful mobsters in Cosa Nostra history.

Thomas Gambino graduated from Manhattan College in the Bronx and then started working for the Gambino family.

In 1962 Gambino married Tommy Lucchese's daughter Frances.

Over 1,000 guests attended the wedding, at which Carlo Gambino presented Lucchese with a $30,000 gift.

In return, Lucchese gave Gambino a part of his rackets at Idlewild Airport (now called John F. Kennedy Airport).

Lucchese exercised control over airport management security and all the airport unions.

As a team, Lucchese and Gambino now controlled the airport, the commission, and most organized crime in New York City.

When Tommy Lucchese died in 1967, his interests in the garment industry were passed to Thomas Gambino, forming the basis of Gambino's wealth.

After Carlo Gambino died in 1976, his designated successor, Paul Castellano, became the new family boss.

Many family members were angered by Castellano's ascension, preferring underboss Aniello "Mr. Neil" Dellacroce instead.

However, Dellacroce insisted that his supporters support Castellano for the good of the family.

This move temporarily quieted dissension in the Gambino ranks.

In contrast, Thomas Gambino, who was Castellano's nephew, enjoyed a strong relationship with the new boss.

Gambino epitomized the low-profile, well buffered, successful businessman image common among second-generation members of the Cosa Nostra.

Given his college education, Castellano gave him responsibility for the family finances and running the trucking in the Garment District in Manhattan.

Gambino and his allies in the Lucchese family were successful at infiltrating several legitimate businesses, especially the garment industry.

This was due to Gambino's strong influence on the garment trucking business in New York and New Jersey.

In 1981, the garment industry honored Gambino as its Man of the Year.

Castellano quickly rewarded Gambino by making him a full family member, or "made man", and later a capo of his own crew.

In December 1985, the death of underboss Dellacroce brought the simmering dissension in the Gambino family to a head.

Instead of selecting an established and respected capo to be the new underboss, Castellano instead chose his driver, Thomas Bilotti.

At this point, capo John Gotti and Frank DeCicco saw the opportunity to capitalize on this discontent and kill Castellano and then take over the family leadership.

On December 16, 1985, both Castellano and Bilotti were murdered by Gotti gunmen in a restaurant ambush at Sparks Steak House.

Gambino, who was not part of the conspiracy, arrived at Sparks moments after the killing, to be turned away by DeCicco.

Gotti was then elected the new boss of the Gambino family.

Although Gambino had been a Castellano loyalist, he quickly paid loyalty to Gotti and was able to preserve his position within the family.

Since Gambino was such a strong earner for the family, Gotti did not want to replace him.

In a conversation with Gambino mobster George Remini, Gotti had this comment about Gambino:

"I mean it sounds crazy, Georgie, but I was telling Frankie and Angelo, I'm gonna suggest to Tommy, we're gonna beef up his regime, Tommy Gambino, but we're not giving him no (expletive deleted) hotheads."

In April 1989, Gambino was indicted for obstruction of justice by lying to a grand jury about Gambino racketeering activities, but was acquitted later that year.

By the 1990s, Thomas Gambino owned three homes; one in Florida, another in Lido Beach, New York, and a third on Manhattan's exclusive Upper East Side.

On October 18, 1990, Gambino was indicted again on charges of extorting the garment industry.

Thomas Gambino also headed the Gambino Medical and Science Foundation, which in 1991 financed a $2 million pediatric bone marrow transplant unit at Long Island Jewish Medical Center.

Thomas Gambino's personal wealth was estimated to be around $75 million in 1992.